Equipment Review and Discussion :: Hydor Prime 30 - any good?

[PridgNYC]

*edit - i have 300 grams, not 500. should i put more in?

@ljapa - good thing i have those high range ph test, otherwise i wouldn't have known that the ph is rising. i have 1 bag of activated carbon but i didn't use it. the water in our city is potable (people can drink it directly from the tap). still, i store water in 2 5-gallon containers.

Put the carbon in, most municipalities use chloramines instead of chlorine now. These don't evaporate with time. They will still be active killing bacteria and irritating the turtle's eyes. I let my water sit for a few days in a 5 gallon jug with a bag of carbon in it to remove these before I add them to the tank. You can also do the carbon filter before adding it to the tank.

[dumbork14]

okay, thanks. will do that now. i know carbon should be replaced, may i ask how often?

[PridgNYC]

Depends on how much stuff it has to absorb and how much you have in there. A lot of people recommend replacing once a month. After it has been exhausted, it will start to release phosphorus, which algae and plants love, and it won't be able to effectively absorb any more of the bad stuff like chloramine. There is no easy way to tell when that happens, so most people just replace it every time they clean their filter. (ie. once a month) Mine has been in the filter for a year without replacement, however, the water I add to the tank has been exposed to fresh activated carbon for at least a couple of days before it goes in the tank.

[dumbork14]

just one bag to be replaced every month?

[PridgNYC]

Frankly, there is no way to be sure how long it lasts. It depends on too many factors. The more water that you adde that has chloramine in it , the more often you will have to change it...

[dumbork14]

thanks! another trial and error for me.

[dumbork14]

test results!!

okay, i have good news and bad news.

good news first, ammonia still at 4.0ppm, but the nitrite spiked up! soo thrilled. nitrate is at 0, but i'm closely monitoring the water for the next two weeks. i hope this is a good sign, and that ammonia levels will be lowered. wish us luck. dumbork is still active, eating and basking (as soon as i opened the basking lights she immediately went up!

now for the bad news, my grandfather passed away this sunday. i'm feeling guilty because i have to stay with my family in the chapel, at the same time, i have to leave them when i have to feed dumbork. i think dumbork noticed that there's something wrong, because she wasn't a fussy eater. can turtles feel the mood?

[VeipaCray]

You want a bag of carbon (chemical media) in the water flow just before the biological media. You'll need to research your filter a bit and figure out the water path. Ideally you'll be aiming for this order:

Following the flow of water in you filter...
dirty water from tank ---> mechanical media (sponge) ---> chemical media (carbon) ---> biological media (ceramic rings) ---> return to tank

[dumbork14]

okay VC. thanks!

[dumbork14]

okay -- so psyched, ammonia level dropped, nitrite spiked up, nitrate also up! haven't posted the result for week 4, will try to collaborate all data later. anyway - here's the pictures!







should i start changing water??

[VeipaCray]

Wait until nitrite also goes to 0. When ammonia and nitrite are both 0 and stay there, your tank is cycled and that's when it's appropriate to do water changes. Looking good.... thanks for sharing the pics. I know many of the forum users will find this thread useful.

[dumbork14]

thanks!! will test again next week!

[dumbork14]

week six results!
still the same, waiting for the nitrite to drop so that i can start the water change. this week is veggie week (romaine lettuce) so poop content was higher than usual. sorry for the low quality took the photos from my phone.

p.s. i keep reminding my sister not to aggravate dumbork during mealtimes and she did it last saturday. the result: dumbork bit her and did not let go for 1 minute and 27 seconds!

edit: picture upload fail -- here it is:

[VeipaCray]

The good news is your ammonia is at 0. Ammonia is the most toxic of the three (ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate). If you hit 8 weeks and your nitrite still isn't at 0.... then your filter just doesn't have enough bio media or enough flow rate.

[dumbork14]

okay, will take note of that. thanks!